§ Fiona MactaggartTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps he has 265W taken to ensure that defence exports promoted by his Department are not used to repress internal dissent in the purchasing countries. [41307]
§ Mr. Tony LloydThe most effective way of ensuring that defence exports are not used for internal repression including the repression of internal dissent is to carry out a thorough assessment of this risk when considering whether to authorise an export. This includes consideration of the human rights record of the recipient country and of the specific end-user, including its use of similar equipment, and the likelihood of diversion from the stated end-use or end-user. The export licensing criteria specify that exports will not be authorised if there is a clearly identifiable risk that the goods concerned might be used for internal repression.